Suburban Orthodox’s New Executive Director Aims to Inspire

February 20, 2017 Haydee M. Rodriguez

Juliya Sheynman says she doesn’t see any contradiction in being a woman and the executive director of an Orthodox congregation.

In fact, Sheynman, the new executive director of Pikesville’s Suburban Orthodox-Toras Chaim Synagogue, points out that two other Orthodox shuls in town, Beth Tfiloh and Bnai Jacob-Shaarei Zion, also have female executive directors.

“I am proud to be a Jewish woman leading an organization with my passion, my gut and my skill,” says Sheynman, 35, who lives in Pikesville with her husband, Leon, and their three daughters, Miri, Chani and Simi. “I see myself as part of a team, and our ability to grow and build will be most impacted on how we can work best together, not on any single contributor.”

Sheynman says she is grateful for “the amazing opportunity to work alongside Suburban’s incredible and dedicated team … amazing men and women lay leaders and volunteers. … I am grateful that the leadership and [Rabbi Shmuel Silber] have entrusted me with this honor.”

Sheynman comes to Suburban Orthodox after spending the past eight-and-a-half years managing the general campaign at The Associated: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore. She says she enjoyed working there and connecting “people to opportunities that were meaningful to them” and impacting the community.

A native of the Belarusian capital of Minsk, Sheynman came to the United States when she was 8. “We were stateless in Italy for two months so our total journey to Seattle, where I grew up, was nearly a year,” she says

With hard work and determination, as well as the support of “amazingly resilient parents,” Sheynman says she flourished in this country and eventually was drawn to becoming an observant Jew.

“Russian kids typically stayed close to home then, so I attended a local university [the University of Washington] and never thought to live independently until I left for seminary in Israel,” she says.

In her role at Suburban Orthodox, Sheynman says she is looking forward to the congregation’s participation in the annual “Shabbat Across America and Canada” with a dinner at the synagogue on March 3rd.

In addition Sheynman is working closely with the synagogue’s executive board and lay leadership on a new strategic plan. She says the plan will make Suburban Orthodox a “vibrant center for Jewish life over the next few years.”

Sheynman is also helming the congregation’s Institute for Jewish Continuity, the educational arm of Suburban Orthodox. The goal of the institute, according to its website, is to “to provide inspiring and intellectually-invigorating Torah learning to all levels of learners. Through courses, classes and lectures, participant learners will increase their knowledge base, and feel a greater sense of connection to and meaning within our rich tradition.”

Shimmy Messing, Suburban Orthodox’s chairman of the board, says he is delighted to have Sheynman at the synagogue.

“Her experience and energy will help us continue to achieve our vision of Torah, tefillah [prayer] and kehilla [community], guided by Rabbi Silber,” Messing says.

Sheynman says she thoroughly enjoys serving as a Jewish professional and hopes to inspire her daughters and others to serve in the community.

“I want people to know that I care about our future as a people and that I hope I am doing my part,” she says. “I want people to know that I take that responsibility very seriously and I hope to make a deep impact through my work at Suburban.”

Haydee M. Rodriguez is a Baltimore-based freelance writer.